Cobalt oxide is used in a number of commercial chemical catalytic processes, such as, for example, the Fisher-Tropsch family of hydrogenation reactions of CO and CO2, the total oxidation of volatile organic compounds, and the selective oxidation of alkanes to alkenes at relatively low (ambient) temperatures. It is widely believed that further reduction of the particle size of cobalt oxide into the nanoparticle range will increase the activity of cobalt oxide catalysts, thereby lowering the reaction temperatures required, and extending the useful life of working catalyst samples.
Thus, there remains a need for simple methods for the preparation of cobalt oxide nanoparticles with a narrow size distribution, for methods to more precisely control the average particle size, while using low cost and environmentally friendly materials, that produce nanoparticles that can be dispersed in water at high suspension densities and remain stable.